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Build an Elementary School in Togo, West Africa

Working with members of West African communities to build schools for girls and boys on a case-by-case basis.

Nick Steeves

Education

Chico, California

United States

2 Team Members

This campaign is raising funds on behalf of Leaping Stone Foundation, a verified nonprofit. The campaign does not necessarily reflect the views of the nonprofit or have any formal association with it. All contributions are considered unrestricted gifts and can't be specified for any particular purpose.

1. Who Are We

We are LeapingStone. We provide quality, self- sustaining primary education for girls and boys in West Africa on a case-by-case basis.

We work directly with individual communities with local team members on the ground. This allows us to build what is needed for each community. No cookie-cutter solutions. No waste. Each community is involved on all levels of the project.

We build and upgrade school buildings. Supply books and other learning materials. Promote entrepreneurship through income-generating skills training. Work hand-in-hand with communities to develop community involvement on all levels of the project

In our most recent project, we built an elementary school in the village of Dédékè, Togo, West Africa. Each grade has it’s own classroom and the teachers have an office. There are two cisterns to help with clean drinking water. There are two blocks of latrines and hand – washing stations. The villagers continue to work to learn new skills that will help them to earn the funds necessary to supply the children with the learning materials they need.

2. What are we raising money for?

Our next project is to build an elementary school in Tsati, Togo.

The village of Tsati (cha-tee) is more remote than Dédékè. For the last year they have been working with Liqua Dossoh - the leader of a local NGO - on organizing their village committees. They are well on their way– having established bank accounts and registering for identification cards. They are cohesive and are working very well together. They have dedicated teachers and headmaster. The villagers help to pay the teacher’s salaries.

Their need is for a proper school building for their children. During a portion of the year — the hot dry season — a thatched–roof structure works fairly well. However, during the rainy season and the Harmattan wind season it provides no protection from the elements. Having a proper school building allows the children to attend school on a consistent basis and helps to protect their books and learning materials while providing them with a safe environment for learning.

We are planning to have construction on the school completed for the 2013-2014 school year, starting September 2013.

Children like Grace are why we do it - we are giving them the opportunity to have a real future and change their lives. Grace lives in Dédékè. She has completed elementary school and is excelling in junior high school.

FAQ: Do I need to create a PayPal account to donate?

No. You only need a credit card with a billing address. Go ahead and click on the "Contribute" button under "Complete your contribution via PayPal," but then just fill out the section "Pay with a credit or debit card" and uncheck the box labeled "Save this information with a PayPal account." Your credit-card payment will then be processed by PayPal without creating a PayPal account. Your contribution will be tax-deductible because LeapingStone is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.

4. I Can’t Donate any $$$, is there anything else I can do?

Yes!Spread the word about this campaign! If you're on Facebook or Twitter, be sure to click the icons at the top of this page, just below the video. Just getting more people to visit this page will help us a lot.